National Infrastructure Bank

A National Infrastructure Bank (Bank) could help leverage billions of private-sector dollars that could be invested in critical nationally or regionally significant infrastructure projects.

A National Infrastructure Bank could be successful if these basic concepts are considered:

• Establish the Bank as an independent entity with the greatest flexibility to finance and fund only projects of regional and national significance.
• The Bank should not follow the GSE model nor be housed at the U.S. Department of Transportation
• Allow the Bank to fund projects beyond just transportation such as drinking and wastewater, electrical grid, levees, dams, ports, broadband and other critical infrastructure.
• Enable merit-based selection of projects by experts so that the most critical and feasible projects proceed by employing benefit-cost analysis methods.
• Ensure federal assistance at a significant enough scale to make these major projects financially viable.
• Ensure that the Bank has the authority to employ a range of finance and funding tools such as credit assistance, low interest loans, tax incentives, Build America Bonds, Private Activity Bonds, enhanced TIFIA authority, and others to be determined.
• Create a method for leveraging public investments with private capital while ensuring adequate protection of taxpayer dollars.
• Establish clear performance measurement standards such as completing projects on time and within budget, reducing traffic delays for passengers and goods movement, reducing carbon emissions, and improving safety.
• Provide project expediting capability by eliminating redundancies to speed completion of projects while still ensuring the environment remains protected.
• Ensure rigorous oversight and audit authority by establishing an Inspector General position, require regular reports to Congress, and publish all data on a website that is available to the public. 

The Bank could initially be capitalized with $25–50 billion from the General Fund with other potential sources of funding that could include:

• Re-appropriated funds of earmarks that have not been expended.
• Re-appropriated funds realized from elimination of wasteful or redundant programs.
• A multi-year, reformed transportation bill.
• Private sector investment
• Revenue saved due to expiring tax subsidies